Method of making a pull tab structure for a reversible slider



Nov- 15. 1955 B. P. LAWSON 2,723,446

METHOD OF MAKING A PULL TAB STRUCTURE FOR A REVERSIBLE SLIDER Filed March 18, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l i. .E. T355.

q E} INVENTOR.

ENDS/{LL P. ZAWJO/V 4 TTUE/VEY Nov. 15, 1955 B. P. LAWSON 2,723,446

METHOD OF MAKING A PULL TAB STRUCTURE FOR A REVERSIBLE SLIDER Filed March 18, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent OF MAKING A PULL TAB STRUCTURE FOR A REVERSIBLE SLIDER Application March 18, 1952, Serial No. 277,164)

3 Claims. 01. 29-409 rmrnon 'This invention relates to a novel method of assembling a pull tab to a separable fastener slider of the reversible type.

In the so-oalled reversible type of slider for separable fasteners, such as shown and described, for example, in U. S. Patent No. 2,495,176, the guide members or wings are interconnected at one end by a pivot so that they may be swung apart to completely disengage the slider hooks or elements and be re-engaged therewith in a relatively reversed position. Normally, the guide members are held in substantially parallel relation by means cooperable with the pull tab of the slider, such means usually comprising aligned apertures in interengaged male and female ears on the two members receiving separable stub shafts or pins on the pull tab. When the pull tab is forced toward a given position, cooperating cam means spread the tab pins sufficiently to release the male ear so that the guide members may be swung apart.

The hinging connectionbetween the guide members is provided. by forming a male ear projecting from one memher and engageable between spaced female ears on the other member. The three cars are formed with holes which are aligned, When the members are properly assembled, to receive a fastening pin which may then be heade to prevent displacement.

' Thepull tab for such sliders comprises a substantially flat'U-shaped metal piece having short pins, fingers or stub shafts on the outer ends of its arms extending toward each other in alignment. An upwardly projecting apertured ear on the lower wing extends between two similar female ears on the upper member, and the tab is assembled to the slider by spreading the tab arms so that the pins are spaced the thickness of the three cars and can snap into the aligned apertures. When the tab is forced toward one extreme position, abutments on the inner edges of its arms engage a cam surface which spreads the arms sufficiently that the pins disengage the central or male ear while remaining engaged in each female-ear. This allows the wings to be swung out of parallelism to disengage the fastener elements so that the slider can be removed and reversed in re-assembly on the fastener.

The amount of spreading of the tab arms required in assembling the tab with the fastener by slipping the open tab end over all three ears is detrimental to the desired springiness of the tab and may result in'malfunctioning or disengagement of the tab. As shown, described and claimed in. my copending application, Serial No. 259,361, filed December 1, 1951, now Patent No. 2,675,606, issued April 20, 1954, for Pull Tab Structure for a Reversible" Slider and Method of Making the Same," these difiiculties may be avoided by forming the apertures in the female ears as'open ended U-slots. The tab pinsneed then be spread only sufficiently to. slip over the 'male ear, riding. in the'U-slots. The U-slots then have their outer ends substantially closed by bending the armsof the U toward eachother;

= The elements of the's'lider are generally mass produced by die casting or the like. it frequently happens thatv the ice axis of the aperture in the male ear, when the wings are assembled, is appreciably displaced relative to the axis of the bights of the U slots in the female ears. Hitherto, this misalignment has caused difficulties in assembling the parts as well as reiection of parts. i

In accordance with the present invention, such misalignment is used to advantage in forming a barrier lip or separation for the pins of the pull tab. A pair of dies which may be separate punches applied prior to the mounting of the pull tab on the slider or the pins of the pull tabs functioning as punches are aligned with the bight axis on either side of the male ear and used to displace met-' al of the latter to shape the aperture into an oval. The displaced metal flows into the enlargement of the aperture midway of the width of the male ear to provide the separating lips. Thereby, when the pull tab is assembled to the slider, the inner ends of the pins are held separated by the thickness of such lip.

For an understanding of the invention method, referonce is made to the following description of a typical. application thereof as illustrated in the accompanying draw ing. In the drawing: 7

Fig. l is a side elevation view of a slider embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged partial side elevation of the ears showing a misalignment of the male ear aperture and the bights of the U-slots;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line i4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, illustrating the formation of the separating lip;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the, line 6--6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a side elevation view of the invention slider in the fastener release position;

Fig. 8 is a plan View corresponding to Fig. 7; and.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the pull tab.

Referring to Figs. 1 through 5 of the drawings,-, a re versible slider is illustrated as including a male member or wing 10 and a female member or wing 21}. Member 10 includes a flat wall 11 partially bounded by flanges 12 to form a i -shaped channel for passage of the separable,

fastener elements through the slider. A substantially tri angular abutment 13 projects from wall 11 adjacent the diverging end of the member, abutment 13' having a fiat surface 14 for a purpose to be described. 1 An car 15 projects rearwardly and outwardly from abutment 13, having a rearwardly disposed aperture 16 and an outwardly disposed aperture 17. The outer edge of ear 15 is tapered, as at 18, for a purpose to be described. 1 j

Female member 20 is similar in outline to rnale member 10, having a fiat wall 21 partially bounded by flanges.

and a fiat surface 24 arranged to engage surface 14- to maintain members It and 2t normally-in parallelism with flanges 12 and 22 in substantially-parallel spaced relation. A pair of laterally spaced cars 25 project vertically in opposing directions fro-m wall 21, the respective opposing portions thereof being indicated at 25a and 2511, the inner walls of ears 25 being spaced suificient to receive car 15 therebetween. The ear portions 2.5a have parallel walls while ear portions 2511 have inner walls in alignment'with, those of the ear portions 25a, while the outer walls there of are inclined to form cam surfaces 28, for a purpose to be later described. Just forwardly of ear portions 25b, wall 21 has outwardly projecting laterally spaced cars 23 each having a U-shaped recess 26 therein alignable with aperture 17 when the members 10 and 20 are assembled;

When the two members are assembled in parallelism, with ear 15 engaged betweenthe inner facesfor' walls of ear portions 25:: and 25b of ears 25 andwith the surface 24 engaging surface 14, the flanges 12 and 22 are spaced to pass the stringers of a separable fastener. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the teeth of a closed fastener are disengaged as they pass from trunk passage 31 into branch passages 32, 32 to either side of abutment 13, and are re-engaged by passing from branch passages 32 into trunk passage 31.

Wings and 20 are hinged together by a pin extending through ears and portions 25a of ears 25. Alternatively, this connection may be formed as shown, described and claimed in my copending application Serial No. 259,362, filed December 1, 1951 for Pivotal Connections for Hinged Members of Sliders or the Like.

The pull tab for the slider is shown at 40, and in detail in Fig. 9, as being a substantially fiat, springy metal member, generally V-shape in plan, which latter shape provides for the utilization of a maximum bending moment without deformation upon development of stress thereon. Tab 40 has a bight 41 and diverging arms 42, 42. Each arm has an abutment 43 on its inner edge near its free end. The free end of each arm has a short stub shaft or pin 44 extending at right angles thereto, these pins being in alignment and slightly spaced from each other. The V-shape of tab 40 provides a uniform stress distribution as compared to the usual tab in which arms 42, 42 form sharp right angles with bight 41.

The hole 17 in ear 15 is frequently misaligned axially with the bights of slots 26, as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. In accordance with the present invention, dies 50, 50 are aligned with the bights (Fig. 4) and forced inwardly against opposite surfaces of car 15. This displaces metal of car 15 to form new apertures 57 extending inwardly from either surface of ear 15 in alignment with the bights of slots 26 but on an axis displaced from that of hole 17.

The hole in ear 15 is thus formed into an oval including the overlapped holes 17, 57, 57. The displaced metal flows into the aperture midway of the thickness of ear 15 to form a lip 55 whose inner curvilinear edge 55a is inwardly of the original edge 17a of the hole 17 (Fig. 6). This lip forms an abutment separating the two new holes 57, 57.

Tab 40 is now assembled with the slider in the following manner. The arms 42, 42 are spread just sufiiciently to engage the tapered surfaces 18, 18 of ear 15. The pins 44 are then forced inwardly over surfaces 18, 18 being spread further apart thereby, and into slots or recesses 26. The pins then snap into holes 57, being held slightly apart by lip 55. To complete the assembly, the projections 29 bounding recesses 26 are then bent around pins 44 as shown in broken lines in Fig. 1 and in full lines in Figs. 2, 7 and 8. Thus, by virtue of the specific V-conformation of the tab 40 and its aforesaid utilization of its maximum bending moment without deformation under stress, the arms 42 thereof need be spread only one-third the amount normally required, reducing the assembly stress on the pull tab.

When tab 40 is assembled to the slider, the surface 24 is held against surface 14 to maintain wings 10 and in parallelism. To release the slider from a fastener, tab 40 is forced rearwardly to the position of Figs. 7 and 8. Abutments 42 engage sloping cam surfaces 28 on ears b to spread arms 41. Pins 44 are thus released from holes or recesses 55 while being held by bent-over projections 29 of ears 23. Wing 20 thus swings about the pivotal connection between car 15 and ears 25a, under the pressure on tab 40, so that the slides may be disengaged from the fastener and reversed, if desired. The inner ends of pins 44 ride on ear 15, and readily snap back into recesses 55 when tab 40 is swung to the opposite position and pressed inwardly. The lip 55 maintains the inner ends of pins 44 separated so that there is a firm, springy gripping action of the tab on the slider due to the resilience of tab 40.

Although aperture 57 in enlargement of hole 17 of ear 15 has, in the showing of the drawing and the earlier description, been described as formed by opposing plungers or dies 50, 50, in a step preceding the mounting of the pull tab carrying the pins 44 to the slider, it is within the province of this invention to utilize the aforesaid opposing 4 pins 44, 44 of tab 40 as plunger or die elements to effectuate the formation of aperture 57 and intermediate lip as a single step during the mounting of the tab in relation to the intermeshing ears 15 and 25, 25 of the respective Wings 10 and 24 In such procedure the pins of the tab are spread as they slip into the slots or recesses 26 and then into relative alignment with aperture 17 of ear 15 and thereafter pressure is applied from opposing directions against the respective outer portions of pins 44, 44 by plungers or dies functioning in a manner analogous to plungers or dies 50, 50.

While a specific embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the invention principles thereof, it should be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

l. The method of assembling a pull tab to a separable fastener slide of the type having a pair of guide wings hingedly interrelated at one end and having interengageable flat surface portions positioned and arranged to space the assembled wings in parallel relation, a male ear extending from the inner surface of one wing and having a substantially circular aperture of a pre-set diameter extending therethrough through a slot in the other wing, and a pair of spaced female ears extending from the outer surface of the other wing on either side of the slot and receiving the male ear therebetween, each female ear having an opening therethrough substantially alignable with the male ear aperture, the pull tab being V- shaped and having pins on the outer ends of its arms extending toward each other and substantially contiguous, such method comprising applying opposing pressures to coaxial circular areas on opposite surfaces of the male ear each having such pre-set diameter, the axis of said areas being offset from the axis of the male ear aperture by less than the diameter of the latter, to displace metal of the male ear into such aperture to form aligned recesses overlapping one end of such aperture and separated by a partition formed of the material displaced from the body of the male ear by the recess formation, and spreading the tab arms until the pins slip into the recesses in the male ear to engage such partition.

2. The-method of assembling a pull tab to a separable fastener slide of the type having a pair of guide wings hingedly interrelated at one end and having interengageable fiat surface portions positioned and arranged to space the assembled wings in parallel relation, a male ear extending from the inner surface of one wing and having a substantially circular aperture of a pre-set diameter extending therethrough through a slot in the other wing, and a pair of spaced female ears extending from the outer surface of the other wing on either side of the slot and receiving the male ear therebetween, each female ear having an open ended recess therein substantially alignable with the male ear aperture, the pull tab being V-shaped and having cylindrical pins on the outer ends of its arms of substantially such pre-set diameter and extending toward each other and substantially contiguous, such method comprising spreading the tab arms to slip the pins over the male ear into the female ear open ended recesses with the pin axes being offset from the aperture axis by less than the diameter of the latter, applying pressure from opposing directions axially against the pins acting as plungers to displace metal of the male ear into such aperture to form aligned recesses overlapping one end of such aperture and separated by a partition formed of the material displaced from the body of the male car by the recessed formation.

3. The method of assembling a pull tab to a separable fastener slide of the type having a pair of guide wings hingedly interrelated at one end and having interengageable flat surface portions positioned and arranged to space the assembled wings in parallel relation, a male ear extending from the inner surface of one wing and having a substantially circular aperture of a pre-set diameter extending therethrough through a slot in the other wing, and a pair of spaced female ears extending from the outer surface of the other wing on either side of the slot and receiving the male ear therebetween, each female ear having an open ended recess therein substantially alignable with the male ear aperture, the pull tab being V- shaped and having cylindrical pins on the outer ends of its arms of substantially such pre-set diameter and extending toward each other and substantially contiguous, such method comprising spreading the tab arms to slip the pins over the male ear into the female ear open ended recesses with the pin axes being offset from the aperture axis by less than the diameter of the latter, applying pressure from opposing directions axially against the pins acting as plungers to displace metal of the male ear into such aperture to form aligned recesses overlapping one end of such aperture and separated by a partition formed of the material displaced from the body of the male ear by the recessed formation, and crimping the free ends of the female ear recesses over the pins.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,752,928 Prentice Apr. 1, 1930 1,874,457 Corey Aug. 30, 1932 1,901,189 Poux Mar. 14, 1933 2,082,739 McWilliams June 1, 1937 2,140,764 Reiter Dec. 20, 1938 2,276,050 Leighton Mar. 10, 1942 2,302,767 Hackbarth Nov. 24, 1942 2,320,566 Carlile June 1, 1943 2,364,100 Savitsky Dec. 5, 1944 2,372,837 Low Apr. 3, 1945 2,486,401 Gerstman Nov. 1, 1949 2,526,653 Gerstman Oct. 24, 1950 

